In the Kingdom of Mists

by JaneJakeman (Author)

• Used

  Hardcover
  2002

  $3.40

  Set in turn-of-the-19th-century London along the banks of the Thames, this novel combines a hugely atmospheric psychological thriller with what may most accurately be described as 'art fiction', for one of the central characters is Monet. By now a celebrated and successful artist - despite the controversy stirred up by the Impressionist movement - in the early years of the new century, Monet returned to London to paint his famous Thames series. His haunting and intriguing paintings act as witnesses to a grizzly string of Ripper-like murders perpetrated on young women. Linking the investigation of the murders with the Monet story, is Oliver Craston, a young man from the Foreign Office who by chance discovers a body in the Thames at Waterloo and so becomes involved in the police investigation. At the same time, with British nerves jangling over the French, who openly sympathised with the Boers, he has been detailed by the FO to determine whether the presence of M. Monet and his son at the Savoy Hotel need be regarded with suspicion. But in fact, there are other, more appalling activities going on in the private apartments on the 6th floor and the backstreet slums of Lambeth which even M. Monet's most intuitive of paintings can only hint at. A truly compelling, multilayered and unusual narrative, the novel will be illustrated with 12 colour reproductions of the paintings themselves.

• Used

  Paperback
  2003

  $4.38

  London, 1900: while Monet paints the wintry mists over the Thames, the bodies of two young women are dragged from its murky depths arousing fears of a return of Jack the Ripper By now a celebrated and successful artist - despite the controversy stirred up by the Impressionist movement - in the early months of the new century, Monet returned to London to paint his famous Thames series. Prompted by memories of an earlier visit in 1870, the old man recalls his youthful struggles, his beloved first wife Camille and his scandalous relationship with Alice Hoschede. And now, in a frenzy of creative activity he paints the haunting canvases that act as a backdrop to a series of grizzly, psychopathic killings. Oliver Craston, a fledgling diplomat, by chance is present when a horribly mutilated body is pulled from the Thames. Mindful of the need to steer clear of controversy, he is unwillingly drawn into the police investigation. Furthermore, with the Foreign Office nervous over French sympathies with the Boers, Oliver's new acquaintance with M. Monet and his son, who are staying in the luxury of the Savoy Hotel, is likely to raise an eyebrow or two. But on the floor above the Monets' suite, given over as a hospital for wounded officers, stalks a far greater danger...and across the river in the backstreet slums of Lambeth are visions of horror beyond even the intuition of the artist. As the naive young diplomat becomes entangled with bohemian society and the seamier side of London that the investigation exposes him to, a disturbing and unfamiliar world opens up to him. This compelling and mutlilayered novel is an atmospheric exploration of the life of an artist, a murder thriller and, like Tulip Fever and Girl With a Pearl Earring, a triumphant example of 'art fiction'. It is illustrated with 12 reproductions of the paintings themselves.